Renewable Energy Specialist

ESP Energy, based in Shrewsbury. was employed to install the biomass heating system at Portmeirion, near Porthmadog in north Wales.

Architect Clough Williams-Ellis designed and created the Italian-style village between 1925 and 1976, and it became particularly famous as The Village in 1960s television drama The Prisoner, starring Patrick McGoohan.

The bespoke energy system will provide heating and hot water for 28 properties at the site, including the distinctive villas Castell Deudraeth and the Portmeirion Hotel.

ESP Energy managing director, Mike Collison, said: “We were delighted to win this tender for such a prestigious location and recently commissioned the system, both on time and to budget.

“We have installed over 3.5 kilometres of sunken pipework around the unique setting with minimum disruption, together with building a dedicated Energy Centre to house the system itself on the edge of the village, and this will provide energy for the next two decades and beyond.”

Portmeirion’s managing director, Robin Llywelyn, added: “Portmeirion village will benefit greatly from using a more efficient system, saving money on energy, earning through the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme and lowering their carbon footprint, thereby future proofing the beautiful village for many years to come.

“In the words of architect Clough Williams-Ellis, we should ‘cherish the past, adorn the present and construct for the future’ and that is certainly what we have done with this project.”

Read our case study for this project here!

ESP Sales & Service Ltd is a family run company based in the heart of Shropshire that has been helping businesses and individuals implement renewable technologies for over a decade.

They specialise in the installation and maintenance of Solar PV systems, Biomass Boilers and Combined Heat & Power (CHP) systems.

ESP has grown steadily since its beginnings in 2010 with father and son Mike & Joe Collison installing domestic Solar on properties, and now employ 22 members of staff from the local community and install everything from small domestic systems to large industrial sized solar parks.

Working out of a 7-acre site in Stapleton, near Dorrington, ESP is striving to achieve net zero in terms of emissions and has implemented a combination of the technologies they install including Solar PV, Batteries, Biomass Boilers and Heat Pumps which provide electricity and heating to the 25,000ft² of industrial buildings on their site.

The renewable technologies installed are saving CO2 emissions of around 233 tonnes per year, whereas direct emissions from running the business equate to around 70 tonnes per year.

Directors Mike & Ross Collison believe firmly that in order to advise others to do their part for the environment for future generations, they must lead by example and do their part too.

With energy prices soaring over the last couple of years and people worrying about the unpredictability of the energy markets the renewable industry has grown, but ESP has found that the length of time that they have been in business has been a reassurance to customers, as its all well and good installing a system but clients want to know that you will be around to fix it if there is a problem in the future.

Award-winning ESP Sales & Service has a team of full-time service engineers that work across the UK maintaining Volter & Burkhardt Wood Gasification CHP units, which they have the exclusive UK distribution rights for spare parts and are currently looking to expand their team further and employ another maintenance engineer with experience in mechanical and electrical engineering, who enjoys fault finding.

If you are reading this and think that this could be you, email a copy of your CV to enquiries@espenergy.co.uk

Bodenham Arboretum is making progress towards bolstering its energy efficiency by installing solar panels. The project is considered a major part of its commitment to lower the Arboretum’s carbon footprint by adopting a renewable energy source.

The Arboretum in Wolverley, just outside Kidderminster, is installing 292 solar panels on its barn roofs to power its visitor centre, 100-seat restaurant and working farm. The panels are expected to generate 135,000 kilowatt hours annually and reduce carbon emissions by 34 tonnes per year.

James Binnian, owner of Bodenham Arboretum said: “We have been looking at improving the sustainability of our operations whilst reducing the impact on the environment for some time. “Running a busy visitor centre, restaurant and kitchen with ever-increasing electricity costs, we must make sure that energy is used efficiently. In peak periods of electricity use, it is not unusual for our monthly electricity bill to hit £5,500. Not only do solar panels offer fantastic financial benefits, they also reduce our reliance on the grid which relies heavily on fossil fuels to generate energy, so the environmental benefits are just as good.”

“The solar panels are expected to save the equivalent of one million kilometres of car travel or 718 long-haul flights over their 25-year lifetime. Mr Binnian said the project received approval from the government’s National Heritage Department, which awarded the site heritage status in 1995. The installation, led by Shrewsbury-based ESP Energy, is designed to be low-impact and visually discreet.”

According to ESP Energy, Bodenham’s system will reduce their CO2 emissions by 34 tons per year. Over its lifetime – 25 years, it is also predicting that the energy saved will be the equivalent of just over 1,000,000 km of car travel or 718 long haul flights. Alternatively, it will have had the same benefit of having planted just under 6,500 trees.

Ross Collison, Director at ESP Energy commented, ‘We’re excited about the potential this installation holds for Bodenham Arboretum. The investment seems a natural progression for them. Furthermore, we have worked diligently to ensure that our renewable energy installation blends seamlessly with the landscape.”

The installation is due for completion during Autumn – whilst the daylight hours will be shorter during this season the solar panels will still prove to be a viable source of energy.